When you read about Google’s plans for self-driving cars, it’s easy to remember that the company is quite capable of thinking outside of the box. When you fail to see any recent news about said car, it’s easy to forget that Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) is more than just search. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) on the other hand, for those who don’t use a Mac, is easy to view as simply the maker of the iPhone and iPad and a company that hasn’t released a new product in quite some time.
Google and Apple Both Designing Game Consoles
This could soon change with the two rivals potentially facing off in a very different arena, video game consoles. In a strange twist, reported by The Wall Street Journal last evening, it appears that Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) is dead set on producing both a smartwatch and a game console that would allow users to play Android games on their televisions. The report also suggested that this was in response to Apple doing the same thing, something that insiders expect to see bundled with the next version of Apple TV.
Ouya May Have Lit the Fire With Their Success on Kickstarter
As a tablet owner, I simply don’t see the appeal but that’s not to say that others don’t or wont. Look at Ouya. At least conceptually, the hacked-together Android based console that was released last week for $99. I say conceptually, because of the success the developers found when they took their idea to Kickstarter and were able to raise nearly $9 million to begin producing the device.
It’s difficult to say for certain that this provided the impetus for both Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to think that there was enough interest in playing phone games on the TV to look at making a device to do just that, but it’s certainly not outside the realm of believability.
The Ouya seems cobbled-together. Primarily, because it was. It’s easy to see either an Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) or Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) console destroying the Ouya with a refinement it just can’t muster. All this before the Ouya, the first “open” console gains any real traction.
While an outside possibility, this foray into console gaming could also see Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) or Google looking at taking on the Xbox or the Playstation lines. While you might think me mad for making the suggestion, try to remember how you viewed Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s unlikely console when they announced its intention to take on Sony and Nintendo.
Either way, it will be interesting to see how this shakes out once either company releases its first console.
